1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to in-line skates, specifically to improve safety and performance by providing the mechanical means to control speed and to abruptly stop in a form and manner that is comparably used in skiing.
2. Status of Prior Art
The state of the art method of control and braking on in-line skates (since the inception of the sport (about 25 years ago), has been a heel brake pad on the right or left skate. To engage the heel brake pad (as one is moving forward out of control), the skater has to lean back, extend one leg forward and lift the toe of that skate to apply rear pressure to the heel brake pad.
This ungainly, unbalanced, one leg and skate method of control and braking is not only ineffectual, it more often than not causes the skater to fall with injurious results. For that reason, most in-line skaters do not use or attempt to use the heel brake pad. That lack of control has resulted in a high percentage of injuries, casting a noticeable pall over the sport in the last 5 or so years.
The present invention is an improvement to earlier U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,827 B2, the contents of which is hereby incorporated into this application.